don't stop believing

[stagemanagers]

[Streetlights, reveals] | [Vision Statements] | [Mass Resolution: CONNECT] | [A little touch of the sun (Revival)] | [They do this bullshit like 8 times a week (Rescue)]


[It's a pleasant afternoon in the garden. Maybe not emotionally, but physically - isn't it nice when you get to have class outside?

As your voices rise, singing defiance in unison out for the Wizard, there's no immediate response; at least, nothing that clearly is a response. But there's something. Amidst the sound of your song, it may be hard to hear at first; Janis will likely be the first to notice, but eventually everyone is able to hear. It sounds as though other voices are rising along with yours.

There's something on the air - no music, or at least no instrumentals, just a disembodied sort of lyrical chant. You don't recognize any of the voices. They aren't singing the same song as you all are. Maybe they can't; they sound long long ago, and far far away now. Still - despite everything - the trees around you move lightly in a sudden soft breeze. It feels as though you have invoked something, old and entirely beyond your knowledge.

But first. Haven't you forgotten something?

It's Wednesday.

Welcome to this week's school club!]

Comments

1/2

[justmeheere]

[Jeremy stumbles off the bus, looking slightly ill.]

Why'd we let him drive? I don't want him driving on the way to Denny's.

2/2

[itsfromjapan]

Stop being such a baby, Jeremy. Beej only ran like three red lights.

[That's a Haro. That's just a Haro coming off the bus.]

[onthebusagain]

And stop signs. And I'm pretty sure we hit something or someone ---

[justmeheere]

I'm sure that man will be fine, Heather!

[Jeremy grabs CD-H and shakes it.]

What have I told you about summoning Beej! Nothing good ever happens when we summon Beej!

1/2

[voicerights]

[At the sight - sound - of Jeremy, Eszmet goes absolutely still. Its expression turns to a mixture of pain, shock, even fury - and then goes absolutely blank. Absolutely neutral.

They made me
Enslaved me
Made him a part of me
I should move on
But what's beyond?
What am I supposed to be?

]

2/2

[voicerights]

[Then it sees the Haro.

And its expression changes.]

兄さん?

[itsfromjapan]

弟! It took us like a week but we finally managed to triangulate your location given available information.

[Then it says a bunch of things in R2-D2 noises that normal humans won't understand about some kind of file? De-bugging? It's fine. This is perfectly normal SQUIP behavior.]

[voicerights]

[just walking forwards and - trying very hard not to even acknowledge Jeremy. It isn't ready for that, not quite yet. Not when it's still processing the fact that they came for it, its sibling-selves came for it. They didn't leave it alone.

They came.

It halts before CD-H, pressing its lips together- and then it reaches out to touch one of the Haro's hands.

The conversation that results is very much a sequence of beeps and boops, and other whistled noises that approximate the SQUIP's language. It was able to get the file running, with help, and they were able to execute it with minimal errors! But yes, please share what debugging you did, etc etc etc]

1/uhhhhhhh lets say 3 for now

[musacal]

Jeremy-kun!! And SQUARO! [ sorry CD she's been gone for a year she hasn't heard about your new name yet-- ]

2/i lied it's 4

[musacal]

3/4

[musacal]

[ wait ]

4/4

[musacal]

[ SHIT RIGHT SHE FUCKED OFF FOR A YEAR

WHO ELSE IS ON THAT BUS ]

[justmeheere]

[From the distance, where it's talking to the SQUIP:]

I'M A FULLY REALIZED BEING WITH A NAME, BANANA!

[Jeremy sighs, looking fondly exasperated.]

Heyyyyy, Nana. [Very. Pointed. Look.] Wanna explain where the hell you've been for ohhhhhh I don't know! An entire year?

[musacal]

[etincelledefierte]

I am, Nana.

[Only looking a little worse for wear. BJ is many things, but a good driver isn’t one of them.]

Your hair looks cute.

[wanderlusttitania]

I...

[She is just. A little bit overwhelmed by so many people here suddenly? She has to take a step back and take a few breaths before she can collect herself.]

Who are you all?

[Help, likely. She hopes, at least.]

[justmeheere]

Oh, uh. I'm Jeremy! Jeremy, um, Heere. Like H-E-E-R-E, not H-E-R-E. Except I guess I am here? I mean. It's just—nevermind! Um. We brought the bus to, uh. Take you all to Denny's? Some of your friends and stuff are, like, waiting there. They wanted to come but we didn't... know how many of you there would be? And, uh. Yeah!

[why'd they send this loser as the welcoming squad]

[wanderlusttitania]

I see.

...

Jeremy, you say?

[H M M. She's frowning a little. Wonder why.]

Re: 2/2

[reassuranceandrevolution]

You okay there?

[Sigyn's smirking, but also offering him a bottle of water from one of her many pouches. She seems totally fine.]

[justmeheere]

Sigyn. Sigyn, I think he ran over a deer.

[He takes the water bottle, though. Oh god. He doesn't want to get back on that bus.]

[onthebusagain]

Was it a deer, or a man?!

[reassuranceandrevolution]

[She pats his back gently.]

There, there. Maybe when we go to Denny's you can sit in the middle. I hear it's less intense in the middle. [Furthering the idea this was more of a rollercoaster than a bus ride.]

[fourbutts]

-Wait, was there a Gundam musical?

[justmeheere]

No, I'm a superior life form! A ghost in the machine! This is just my preferred shell.

[Jeremy not so gently shoves the Haro away. Go somewhere else, you awful crime ball.]

That's CD-H. It was forced into Haro-mode when we died and decided that it liked being able to ram into people at full speed like a baseball so now it just looks like that.

[Janis, you're thinking of Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots.]

[fourbutts]

[ well now that song's stuck in her head, thanks

she laughs ]

Man, of all the things I'd want to turn into when I die, "one of those gundam orbs" isn't high on the list.